Desperation
by Anya-Paradox
Summary: Counterpart/sequel to Delusion. Insanity always danced in his eyes now, and I wondered sometimes if I loved him only because I never knew how long he would last. Would he kiss or kill? Could he return the life I had once known? AxA Slightly mature
1. Dead

**Chapter 1: Dead**

A/N: So, this would be my counterpart to Delusion, as you will all soon see. I hope you love it, because I adore this AND Delusion so much! Review please!

Disclaimer: I do not own anything Class of the Titans.

_// Oh How Could Anyone Not Love Your Cold Black Heart? //_

I think it's a strange way to die, killed by the one thing you knew you shouldn't have trusted, but you did anyway. I had never believed I could be killed before these few weeks, but my time with _him_ had opened my eyes.

Death was everywhere. From the trunk of a car, to a hotel room, to dreams, to reality. Hell, death even danced in his eyes.

My best friend had always told me I was too bold, too brave and altogether too fearless. I suppose this had killed me as well. But it wasn't the only reason I was dead.

I had been murdered.

However, could you call it murder when you would have died even if they hadn't killed you?

My killer is a man. Almost a boy -he is so _young_-, but older than me, making him a man in my eyes. I guess that made me the stupid, naïve girl. I can accept that now in death, as I never could in life.

Death suited me. I wouldn't have believed that earlier; I suppose no one would believe that, as dead was dead. Death was believed to be cold and lonely and calm and quiet. I was _–or had been-_ fiery, temperamental, passionate and loud. I knew it, and perhaps those qualities alone were what had drawn _him_ to me.

I digress; Death is _not_ cold, lonely, calm or quiet. It is beautiful and passionate and lovely and you finally, finally understand _everything_.

Sometimes it hurts… understanding everything, I mean. I would have known that he wasn't lying, at least to me. I would have known that he was telling the truth when he had told me he loved me. I would have realized that despite his age, he was very wise. I could have told him I loved him back. He could have let me live, I could have lived, every_one_ could have lived.

It wasn't his fault. Nor was it mine, I suppose.

I suppose I could share who _he_ is. I don't really like to think his name. It hurts me too much. Whatever else death is, it is painful mostly. But it's a lovely type of pain, all eye-opening and caring and beautiful.

Archie.

There it is again, the tingling, the burning, and the pain. But his name is beautiful, and I long to whisper it again, to let it roll over my cold lips and feel closer to him again.

Archie. Archie. Archie.

The chant of his name triggers another memory, and I feel myself cry out in pain and longing.

The Seeper.

Poison.

Hope.

"Archie!" I feel as if this scream has torn the fabric of my being as I feel his lips press against my cheek.

But I am dead. And screaming is not something we do, and neither is desire.

Despite this, I am full of it. Full of screams and desire and love and pain and wonder. I believe it has something to do with the conditions of my death.

Dying in the presence of the one thing you love more than your life, and the one thing you hated more than anything in your past life can do things to your mind. Terrible, cruel things. I believe that is what originally happened to him. Except… he isn't dead.

Oh gods, he can't be dead. I can feel panic rising, and I know this is another emotion that they told me not to feel. I can't describe who they are; they do not have a name like he does. All I know is they are terrifying, beautiful, ugly and wonderful all at the same time.

I think them to be angels sometimes, and they appear as such, leading me down corridors in my mind I never knew were there. Sometimes they come to me as demons, giants, devils, gods and they are horrible.

Once, they came to me as Archie. It was a wonderful moment of death, thinking he had joined me here, in this oblivion. It was also painful, knowing he had died and come to me, perhaps even died to be with me.

That's just the way death is, you know? It's bittersweet, so full of pain and love and hurt and wonder and hate and life!

Contradictory perhaps, but true. Maybe this is why no one knows what death is like. No one can truly understand it till they have been here. I would invite you, but it is a one way ticket!

My humour is turning as rotten as this coffin full of worms. I can't see my coffin, but I know it's around me. Archie would have buried me; he would have given me that. Although, he had always believed I didn't deserve to be placed in the ground and eaten.

Fire.

Cremation.

The thought sat surprisingly well with me. My body was gone, and maybe Archie had some of the ashes. I prayed that he was well, and I wonder if perhaps that was redundant because I suppose I could just ask _them_ if I could go see God and give my request to him personally.

But God probably doesn't look kindly upon murderers, and I wouldn't want to draw unnecessary holy attention upon Archie. After all, despite what he had done to me, I did want him in heaven!

Was I in heaven? Even now, as I am dead, I don't really know. It's a wonderful place –did I already tell you this? - But dead is dead, and it's not _that_ great.

It wasn't Elysian Fields and that concerned me. Archie… would he go there?

Why in the world wasn't I there!? He promised me I would be! Tears would flow at this moment if my eyes weren't a pile of ashes. Understanding wasn't this great if I couldn't even figure things out!

I know I am getting ahead of myself. I should start at the beginning of my story, of our story, and explain the curious situation of my demise.

However that would take much too long. It was a lifetime, forever, immortal, and burned into my mind. But I suppose I could highlight the details.

Had it only been a few weeks ago that I had been at home, safe, in my house?

Now I must be too far behind. Alright, let me explain a few things first.

I am dead. Unbelievably, forever, irreversibly dead. I am also much too young to be so. I am twenty one years old, and smart and friendly. Or… I was. I don't really know how long I have been dead. Could be minutes, or I guess it could be… millennium. But if it had been so long, wouldn't Archie be with me now?

Red hair, hazel eyes, tanned skin, athletic body and a vicious right hook. This would have described me in life, and now in death I had no desire to see myself and change it. These things were what Archie had loved, and I wouldn't want him not to recognize me. I hoped I still looked like I had in life.

I was killed, by Archie, by my murderer, by a knife. A butcher knife to be exact; and it entered and exited my body thirty eight times. It's amazing that I can't recall how it felt, to be stabbed and dying. I can remember being cold, and being hit and crying. I can also remember being warm, being loved and smiling. Reality escapes me sometimes, and I think that is also a cause of staying around Archie too much.

Archie was a twenty three year old mental hospital escapee. He has a known violent streak, a horrible addiction to cocaine, gambling, drinking and stealing. However, he does not smoke. Archie believes cigarettes to be evil and says they are too unhealthy to even attempt to be addicted to.

I never understood him in life; I didn't even try to in death. He was beautiful and cruel and kind and loving and full of hate. Archie was pale, unbelievably so, due to the length of time he had spent in jail and hospital. He had steel grey eyes that had the unbelievable capacity to be cruel as ice or warm as molten magma at the same time. His lips were stern and talented, his nose crooked but manly.

He had calloused hands, and a deadly grip. His hair was purple. Crazy, unusual purple. I loved it about him.

I loved everything about him in fact, and I had since the moment he had kissed me. I know it is silly and probably insane or sick of me to still dream of the man that killed me, and wish for nothing more than his arms around me, but I cannot help it.

Because while Archie killed me, he also saved me, also loved me. And it was worth it.

I suppose in the end, that love killed me.

But back to the start of this love story. I was in a gas station, dreaming of adventures, and wondering how my best friend was doing at work. I was wearing a tight red top that rode too high and showed off my midriff. I had a black belt with a large batman belt buckle on, mostly to hold up the loose denim short shorts I was wearing. I remember this part clearly, because it was the moment everything changed.

I had picked up a bag of Tostitos and the bell signalling someone entering the store had gone off. The man who ran the till was fixing the cigarette rack, and whoever had come in apparently wasn't there for gas. He turned into the aisle to the right of where I stood, and all I saw was purple hair bend down.

I paid for my Tostitos, and turned to walk out; turned to leave my future, my death, my love and the life I wanted.

But something stopped me. I have never truly figured out what it was that held me immobile. I turned, slowly, to see the man staring at me.

At first, it was just eyes. Silver, beautiful eyes. Then a face so masculine, it made me hot. His nose was crooked, but it was meant to be so, because without it, it would be wrong. His hand was frozen on its way to some car magazine, and I wondered if he was staring at me.

It wasn't unusual for this to happen, however I had never felt such a pull from a man before. I was stared at a lot, due to my brash attitude and confident dress code. My best friend often told me that men flocked to my side like birds to a worm. I didn't truly believe her; after all, I wasn't beautiful like she was.

I was loud and obnoxious and temperamental. Boys wondered if I was crazy, men wondered if I could be conquered.

Which, by the way, I couldn't. Not by most men anyway.

But Archie? He conquered me. He consumed me, loved me and left me burning for nothing but his touch. I died by him, for him, with him.

Either way, he was staring at me. I was staring at him. I walked up to him, because that is the way I behave.

"I'm Atlanta." I stuck my hand out. He shook it silently, eyeing me.

"Archie. Archie Jeremy Killes." He informed me.

I remember now that I laughed at his formality. I shouldn't have, but I suppose I was lucky he took it the right way. If he hadn't, I would have been dead a lot earlier.

"Alright Arch." I smiled, "Hopefully I will see you around."

I left then. I went to my car, turned it on. As fate would have it, I had left my Tostitos on the counter.

So, for all that I have, for all that I loved, and for my death, I owe a measly bag of chips.

I entered the store again, and Archie was no where to be found. I grabbed the chips, exited once more and looked around for my car. It was no where to be seen, and I had known that it had just been there. I also knew that I had left the keys in it, unlocked and running.

My last thoughts in that moment were that my car had been stolen, most likely by Archie Jeremy Killes. I was not laughing at his name any longer.

In fact, I never laughed at him again after the cloth went over my mouth and I tasted copper pennies. I knew enough self defence to throw an elbow out and catch my attacker's stomach, but it wasn't enough.

I was gone, unconscious, and no one even knew. My car was gone, my chips were crushed, and I had been kidnapped by someone. Most likely a purple haired freak.

And all over a stupid bag of chips.

_// I Looked At You And Knew You Were The Only Thing That Mattered There Was No One For Me But You //_


	2. Alive : one month earlier

Chapter 2: Alive : one month earlier

A/N: For those of you who were like: W…T…F. Sorry people, she's dead and Archie's a murderer addicted to cocaine. Accept it! You might have realized that this story ties in with Delusion! It's pretty much better if you read Delusion at the same time, just consider Desperation a sequel. And yes, I realize I changed POV in this chapter, don't worry. Review please!

And today I would like to thank **COTT Fanfiction Awards** today (otherwise known as elegos-sirinial-shamtul and while I thanked him for being awesome in Delusion, this time I wanted to thank him for the awards!) and congrats to winners!

Disclaimer: Don't own this.

_// Can You Find Last Night For Me, Repeat What He Said To Me? //_

It wasn't a pleasant way to wake up, of that much Atlanta was sure. Her head pounded and her back itched and she felt like she hadn't showered in days. Maybe she hadn't!

She didn't remember much, although the few bruises she had attested to a rough ride in a trunk. Her eyes were slowly blinking open and staring at a boring white roof, and her mouth still tasted like sickening copper pennies. Atlanta knew why that was. Chloroform tasted of pennies.

That jerk had drugged her! She struggled to move for a moment only to realize that she was exhausted, in pain and tied down by her arms and legs. Fury and hatred raged in her mind, but when suddenly a cool hand hit her brow, her anger dissipated.

"Want some water?" His voice was cool and dispassionate, but something in his tone made her want to sit up. Or take his hand. Or hug him. An underlying hint of desperation; hope perhaps.

But the feeling of compassion didn't last, because just as he brought the water to her bedside, he pulled out a knife and held it above her wrist. Atlanta thought she was about to die, but instead he gently cut off her wrist tie, freeing her arm.

"Your name is Archie Jeremy Killes isn't it?" Atlanta growled, untying her other arm and snatching the water.

He stiffened, "Yeah."

She wondered why he seemed so hurt by her sentence. Atlanta decided she didn't care, "Well, I'm telling you now Arch, you gotta let me go."

Instead of taking offence at her hostile and demanding tone, his entire body relaxed. He sat down beside her and cut her leg ties off. Atlanta was extremely and unnaturally aware of her kidnapper's body beside her generating heat.

It was strange, the comfort she felt with him when he had taken her away and drugged her. Like she was sitting beside her father or mother and cuddled in watching a movie. Only she hadn't sat with her parents in years.

Maybe it felt more like sitting with Theresa and Odie, curled up on a couch and laughing together. Like sitting with some people who made your life, who were your family. People who made you what you were, people you felt like you had always known.

Only this time, the feeling was much, much stronger for Atlanta, and she had never met this man. She stared warily at him from the corner of her eye and wondered if she could run fast enough to get out the door. She thought so, but something warned her that if she ran she would miss something. Or maybe he would just never let her get too far ahead; determined to one day beat her or catch her.

"Atlanta. I need you to promise to stay with me for one week." His voice resonated through her and immediately she wanted to say yes. To accept this ridiculous demand and to expand on it. _Yes, I will stay with you forever._

"No. That's stupid. I'm not going to do that. I am going to try and escape at every turn." She growled.

He laughed, and her head spun. Archie-the-man had disappeared and suddenly she was sitting beside the most beautiful and innocent boy she had ever seen. Like a shimmering picture that you could only witness once but forever wanted to see again. Atlanta felt her heart clench; she _wanted_ to stay to see that picture again.

"I would expect no less from you." He whispered. For a second he brushed his lips against her temple. So very soft.

"You don't _know_ me!" She cried, "And I will escape and take you to prison. I will leave, run away from you –you sick freak!"

Archie didn't move his lips, letting tingles soak her temple and warm her scalp. But his murmured words set fire to Atlanta's blood, "Every time you run, I will catch you Lanta. I will always catch you."

She pushed him away, stunned at the weakness of her arms. Her mind was spinning sickeningly, as if she was missing something vital in her brain. She lay down on her side with her back to Archie's warmth and sighed. Her muscles were flaccid and Atlanta had no desire to run from this strange place. She needed more information, so she would stay the night.

Atlanta refused to admit that she might just have been curious about the man who radiated comfort, danger and tenderness from beside her.

"Stay away from me." She warned him. Her threatening words were ruined by her yawn.

"Never." She heard him swear. The bed creaked and she knew he had gotten off. Soft lips pressed her brow and Atlanta flung an arm out to strike him hard in the shoulder. He reeled back but laughed, and Atlanta knew she had used the last bit of resistance until tomorrow. Until she was rested and food was in her.

Nothing could stop her from leaving here. Not even the safety that this dangerous and unknown man made her feel. Not the singing in her blood or the pounding of her heart.

No one had ever controlled Atlanta Hesper.

_// If I Leave Here Tomorrow, Would You Still Remember Me? //_

_The way he held me rocked me to the pit of my barren soul. I knew that he needed to hold me as much as I needed to be held, and while the warmth and comfort of his embrace calmed me, it burned as well. I didn't know how he could stand to be so near to me when I looked like this._

_I didn't know how he couldn't hate our love when __**theirs**__ was so obviously over. Not over. I couldn't believe that. Wouldn't believe that._

_My bandaged hands were wrapped around his neck, and I knew by the way that he shook that he was holding back a tidal wave of horrifying emotion. Archie had never been an emotional guy, and for him to shake like this, something was wrong._

"_Archie?" I could hear my voice tremble, vulnerable, "Is Jay okay?" _

_His rocking continued and I knew he was no longer holding back tears. Now his every muscle was locked and he held me tight. He wasn't despairing now, he was terrified._

_Breath tickled my ear._

"_I'm so sorry baby." _

_I had never been called baby by him before, and if I had known he ever would have called me that I would have punched him. But this was not a word meant to offend or flatter, it was meant to express emotion. So much emotion. Too much emotion._

_Suddenly I realized the keening noise was me. Did I love Jay so much? No, no I didn't. I loved Jay as a friend, as a leader and as part of my family. Jay was not who I was worried about, even now, even in death. At least he was at peace._

_Theresa._

_My heart pounded at the thought, and once more I pictured Theresa the way she had been in the battle, furious and proud. Her hair had gleamed and blown around her, golden red tinged in purple power. Her skin was luminescent, pale and perfect, something I never was. But she was angry, hateful and full of absolute determination to win._

_The memory was happy. But the next image of her face nearly broke me._

_Odie's broken body cradled in Neil's arms. Neil, crying out, finally showing the desperate love he had held for each and every one of us. Theresa whirling to find Odie's lifeless eyes staring straight at her, and Neil's piercing blue ones tracking her down. _

_I knew that Theresa had the power to save Odie's life, to return his soul to his body and heal him. I also knew that she would never forgive herself for her next actions. The Clairvoyant couldn't forget the instant she had turned away from Odie, leaving him dead, only to stare at Cronus._

_Herry was in the way._

_She knew it, but she also had known that everyone was close to dying. Odie was dead, Archie was fighting only to keep me from being even more severely injured. Neil was cradling a body. But Jay was the deciding factor, and Jay was hurt more than me. Not dead but close._

_Herry and Theresa were the only ones left still fighting._

_Theresa let fly the greatest explosion of power I had ever seen, and I had only seen it through bloodied, tearstained and swollen eyes. But Archie had flinched back and Neil had shrieked._

_When the flash died down, all that was left was Cronus' unconscious body. Theresa transported him with what was left of her strength to the doors of Tartarus. She collapsed, on the ground. Sheer willpower and love dragged her towards Herry, even though we all knew the truth._

_He was dead. A gaping wound was on his chest, and I knew without seeing it that somewhere behind or under him lay his severed heart. His blood was cauterized, heated by Theresa's power and rage._

_Theresa had killed Herry, abandoned Odie and captured Cronus. She was near dead, out of strength and urgently crying out Jay's name._

_Jay was the only one who could have absolved her sins; eased her guilt of her actins._

_But now she had lost Jay too. I knew it by the way Archie tucked me into the crook of his neck and rubbed my back._

_Herry's heart may have lay on the ground beside his body, burned and still from life, but Theresa's was captured in her ribcage, breaking, shattering and destroying everything inside of her that had been willing to fight._

_I clung to Archie at this truth, forgetting how badly my own body was broken, forgetting the sick slice I had gotten from Cronus' scythe on the left part of my chest. Above my heart._

_But my heart was safe, unlike Theresa's or Herry's. My heart was in Archie's hands, which were so tenderly holding me, like he knew that I was all he had left now that Odie, Herry and Jay were dead. Now that Neil didn't care. Now that Theresa was nothing._

_It was just us._

"_Oh Archie." I breathed into his neck. He stilled. "I'm so sorry." _

_He nodded against me, and I heard him whispering something, a mantra. Something he wouldn't let go of, just as he wouldn't let go of me._

"_You will never leave me Lanta. I need you. We always have to stick together, now that everyone else is falling apart. I love you." Those three words. It was the first time they had slipped from his mouth, although not the last. I stilled and I wished that it was only three days ago, where Archie would have flushed and ran away from his truths._

_But it wasn't three days ago and Archie had faced much more dangerous truths since then._

"_I love you too. Always. And we will always be together, even if we have to hunt each other down." _

"_You promise?" _

_I could barely force myself to breathe, let alone speak. Weight was hitting me hard in the chest, right where I would have a thin scar. Jay. Jay was dead. We had no leader. Odie. Oh, Gods. What are we going to do?_

_Herry! My brother, my gentle giant. I love you. I needed them back, all three of them. Theresa needed them, Neil needed them. Need._

_I needed Archie, and he needed me. I forced words into my mouth._

"_I promise I will always love you. No matter what happens." My words were flung out harshly; contrasting the absolute passion that I knew was in them. I believed them, I believe them._

_His whispering continued, and I barely focused. But I knew one thing only. Archie whispered my name, just my name, a golden hope of something that once was, but will never be again. A wish upon a name for happiness without the death that surrounded him._

_Atlanta. Archie. Promise. Belief. Love._

_// Suddenly the Movie Takes A Bitter Turn, She's In Danger We've Learned //_


	3. Chance

**Chapter 3: Chance**

A/N: Well, with Delusion being over, Desperation should hopefully get more attention. I am over one hundred pages into my Original! Review!

Disclaimer: I don't own this.

_// Tonight Will Be The Night That I Will Fall For You Over Again, Don't Make Me Change My Mind //_

It was similar to waking up on cool silky sheets in the melting sun; or perhaps being awoken by feathered kisses to every exposed inch of skin. Either way, it was a delicate sensation of absolute pleasure, and Atlanta dedicated every sense to enjoying it. Her muscles were relaxed and her head was not pounding any longer.

Archie was wrapped around her, and Atlanta knew instantly it was not his fault that he was so completely part of her. He was lying on his back, but she had managed to cocoon herself in his arms, legs flying around his torso.

The strange dream she had probably was to blame for her horrific behaviour. The man had kidnapped her! It wasn't as though she was supposed to be waking up like she wanted to wake up this way for the rest of her life. She was supposed to be terrified, disgusted, angered, and even detached from him. Anything but the overwhelming attraction and tenderness towards him.

"Atlanta." The word was spoken without thought, as soon as she removed herself from his reach. His eyes hadn't opened to expose the magnificent steel blue, but Atlanta somehow knew he saw her. He saw her more clearly than perhaps anyone else in the entire universe.

"Yes." It was snapped. If she could not lie to herself about the way she felt, she would lie to the world. And especially lie to him.

"You promised never to leave me."

She laughed, "I did not. You asked me to promise a week, I did not."

"You did once." His smooth voice was nostalgic and bitter and a strange thrill ran through her as she heard his words. In her dreams she had said that, but it had been a strange and unhealthy dream brought on by fatigue and stress.

Or so she hoped.

"I don't know what you're talking about; I have never even seen you before yesterday." Her voice was quiet, determined to make him understand. Atlanta wanted him to believe that she didn't care at all; anything but letting him know the truth.

But he lifted himself off the bed to come closer to her, and instead of doing the logical thing, Atlanta stayed where she was. She had never been one to run away.

Archie's hand came to brush her cheek, rubbing straight into her short red hair. She couldn't stop herself, instantly she pressed into his hand and let him touch her. His smile was victorious, even as she berated herself.

"Does it feel that way to you Atlanta? Does it really feel like you have never seen me before?" His voice was soft, pleading. Atlanta wanted to tell him she knew him, she knew him better than anyone. But she didn't, and for some reason she didn't want to lie to him.

"You kidnapped me Archie. I don't care if I like you, or if I feel like I know you. You don't just go around stealing people away so you can get what you want."

He frowned, "You don't understand Lanta-"

"No, you don't!" She snapped, "I had a life to get back to, I have friends who will be looking for me!"

He recoiled instantly, backing away from her, "You had friends?"

It wasn't meant to be insulting and Atlanta knew it, but it was so ingrained in her to argue, that instantly she took the opportunity.

"Yeah, friends, something I'm sure you have never had! They care about me, and will look for me!"

His steel blue eyes turned molten, hot with anger, "Don't you dare speak of friends to me Atlanta. I don't care if you have forgotten, I don't care if you don't remember them, they deserve more than you are giving them."

"I haven't forgotten anything! We have never met, we have no friends together!" Her voice was rising in pitch, and she couldn't figure out why her eyes were burning with tears.

Archie finally went very quiet; something Atlanta knew intuitively was a scary change for him. He was all bluff and bluster, but in these moments Atlanta knew he was deadly, truly, insanely deadly.

"You screamed her name in your sleep you know. Theresa." He clarified.

Atlanta went still, recalling the strange and disturbing dream. It had been true, Theresa had been in it. But Atlanta had a friend named Theresa, and as far as she knew-

Her heart pounded.

"Oh gods. Archie Jeremy Killes. Oh gods." Atlanta's whispers were no longer vicious, just terrified.

Archie smiled, "You even keep some of the habits you had all that long time ago. Calling to the Gods? It's an unusual habit. We did it, because we knew them."

"You're crazy."

"Maybe."

"You were Theresa's patient. Dr. Davis?"

"Possible."

"She told me you believed you were a war hero, in a war that didn't even exist. A war against the Greek Gods."

Archie sighed, "I object to that. We loved the Greek Gods; it was only Cronus who we battled. And I was a warrior. But not a hero, never a hero." His last words weren't bitter, but full of awe, as if he was remembering the true definition of a hero.

"Cronus? You battled the God of Time?" Atlanta's voice was half-hysterical.

"**We** battled the God of Time Atlanta."

"We? You are insane. I have never done anything except be too headstrong, too obnoxious and too brave. And get kidnapped."

"You are meant to be headstrong, and brave. You are the Huntress. It is why we argued so often, being so alike."

"Stay away from me." All tender feelings had disappeared to be consumed by blind fear. Archie had been a patient Theresa had been terrified by, and yet had grown the same attachment to him that Atlanta was forming.

He had escaped from the mental hospital only recently, and was considered dangerous to the extreme. He believed he had been in a war with Greek Gods, a war that didn't exist. Not only that, Archie was supposed to be one of the greatest escape artists the authorities had ever seen. He may have objected to being called a hero, but when he called himself a warrior, it wasn't just a title, it was who he was.

The Warrior.

"Stay away from me." She whispered once more, backing as far into the corner as she could without becoming part of the paint. She expected him to use her fear, follow her and torment her. But the sight of her hiding, backing down seemed to torture him.

"Atlanta?" He murmured, stepping forward only once. She flinched badly as he came closer. Instantly he backed off.

"Don't hurt me." She begged. Atlanta couldn't decide between fear, tenderness towards her captor, or absolute self-hate at her weakness.

This time, Archie flinched, "I would never hurt you."

"Don't lie to me. That's what every freak says before he tortures and kills his prisoners." Her voice was vicious, gaining some of the courage she had before.

Anger twisted Archie's face, but he didn't seem to take it out on her. Instead he turned around stiffly and marched to the doorway. He opened the door, blessing her with the sun for only a second.

"Whatever you believe of me Lanta, even if it's a murderer, a coward or an insane kidnapper; don't you ever think for one second I have ever lied to you. I never have, and I never will." With that promise hanging in the air, he slammed the door on his way out.

After a long, quiet minute Atlanta launched herself at the door. She was shaking so badly she couldn't grab the handle properly but as soon as she did, she turned it with all her might.

It was open. Instantly the door opened, the sunlight shocking her as much as the incongruous fact that the door had been left unlocked and Archie was no where to be found.

She ran three steps out of the door before flopping to the ground and staring at the sky. The urge to run away and never stop until Archie was a dim memory was overwhelming, and Atlanta couldn't figure out why she wasn't doing just that.

Her options weighed heavily; on one hand Archie was an escaped prisoner, on the run from the law, violent and obviously psychotic.

On the other hand, he hadn't hurt her, he had tried to back off when she got scared, he made her feel unusually safe and he had left the door unlocked.

But in the end, it was the way he had told her he had never lied to her that made her decision. She stood up, walked to the room she had spent the morning in and closed the door behind her.

The kitchenette was old and obviously barely usable, but there was a wicked looking butcher knife in the drawer. Atlanta laid it under her pillow and sat down on the bed.

Her dream had been strange, and Atlanta still believed Archie was a liar and her dreams were born from stress.

But she was nothing if not brave and somewhat foolish, and she decided to give Archie and her dreams one more shot.

Her head hit the pillow, the handle of the knife poking into her. One more dream, one more chance to let Archie tell her the truth. If not, all she had to do was make him angry enough to leave her with the door opened once more.

This thought she comforted herself with as she drifted into sleep, alone in the room that was her prison.

_// It's Just The Right Amount Of Love And Doubt //_


	4. Heart

**Chapter 4: Heart**

A/N: Wow, sorry it took so long to update! Still working on my original, which consumed a ton of time. Also, I am in Australia! I've been on a vacation on this wonderful country for about a month, and am heading home soon to cold I expect :( But hopefully we shall have more updates! Review!

Disclaimer: I own nothing about Class of the Titans, only my own story ideas :)

_// I Can't Imagine Why You Say You're Not Worth My While //_

_I was lying on the bed, the bed that we had bought together as we furnished our house. Herry and Jay and Terry had helped us move in, and I was once more so grateful that we were all together again. Neil was embittered, and we all realized that this would probably never change._

_But he was with us, and Theresa no longer carried the guilt of death on her heart; she couldn't, not with a life beating in her stomach. When Odie and Herry had tied our souls to the worlds and time stream, they had given all of us another shot at happiness. _

_I truly believe that this might be it, the end of all the death and suffering._

_The pleasing thought exited my mind when Archie finally entered the room. I wanted to leap off the bed, hide and run away, except that he was nearly glowing with pride and joy. For reassurance I glanced to his hand where a brand new gold ring sat. _

_My own hand mirrored his, with a beautiful big diamond, and a matching gold band._

_This was it, finally, the happily ever after we needed and deserved. Everyone was alive, Theresa was pregnant, and Archie and I had finally been married._

_From what Archie told me, this was the first time in all our lives. Unlike Theresa and Jay, who managed to almost always get married before Fates took them away from each other, Archie and I had never reached that stage._

_He told me that there had been lives where I was too stubborn to even glance his way and lives where he had been too hot-headed to give me another chance to try. Reincarnations where I had died and ones where he had killed me accidentally or on purpose._

_"Lanta." His voice was deep and powerful, and almost instantly shivers broke out over my body. Fear gnawed at my stomach, fear of the unknown. It was soothed by the love I had for Archie, and by the way I so badly did want this, did want to consummate the marriage that had taken more attempts than should be natural._

_"Hey Archie." I managed to force out. He quickly moved to my side on the bed. He flopped to lie beside me, and I was gathered into his arms._

_"I love you." He declared softly into my hair. It was longer in this life, and I remembered this fact sometimes in my dreams. Often I would dream of a younger woman, with hair fire-hydrant red hair and scorching hazel eyes. Every so often, the woman would be coated in blood and crying._

_"I love you too." I replied._

_These words gave us both courage, and with our love in the air, we made love on our new bed. It was slow, and it was sweet, and I knew that there was no other place on this world or any of the others I would rather be. Archie treasured me, and I treasured him, and we spent the long night proving it to each other._

_In the aftermath of pleasure, I couldn't help but wonder if Archie loved me as much as my other previous reincarnations. It was a thought that had occurred to me many times before, but I had never let it bother me. Now, I wanted to know._

_"Archie?"_

_"Yes."_

_I swallowed, "Was there a reincarnation of __Atlanta__ that you loved more than one of the others?"_

_He had lived through all of them, through all my deaths, and through all my lives. He had been alive since the beginning, since the woman with blood coating her had been the reality. The real and first __Atlanta__._

_Archie answered me honestly, as he always had, no matter how much it might hurt me, "I don't think I could love any version of __Atlanta__ any more or any less; and I don't think it's possible that there are different versions. You are her, and she was you, and I love you both because you are the same woman."_

_"That doesn't make sense." I was confused, and slightly hurt._

_Archie frowned, "Well, for example, if I died tomorrow, and you lived until my next reincarnation was old enough, and you met him, would you love him more or less than me?"_

_He had me cornered, and we both knew it. I laughed, "I would love him the same, because I would know he was the same as you."_

_"Exactly." Archie said as he kissed my bare shoulder. _

_The words assured me, although the thought of Archie dying didn't sit well with me. I didn't know if I would have the strength to live through his death and continue on until he was with me once more. I didn't know if I would be able to resist the infant of his next incarnation, even though it was the only rule the team had about reincarnations. It was not allowed that one partner went near their intended while they were still younger than eighteen._

_"Don't die on me." I whispered._

_Archie's surprised molten eyes met mine, "I don't plan to."_

_"I know," I laughed, "But I just don't think I would be able to live until you were with me again."_

_At this, Archie's eyes flared, "__Atlanta__, you would have to live. Because there is no choice."_

_"I could kill myself."_

_"You would come back as a child." He growled._

_"Archie," I paused, struggling for words, "Why didn't you kill yourself after one of my deaths? Even if it was just to forget?"_

_He didn't have to pause, he knew the answer. He smiled, softly and painfully. I was so reminded of why I never wanted to live without him when he smiled at me so._

_"Because I didn't want to forget. I needed to remember, because I needed to know what mistakes not to make with the next incarnation." He took a break only to kiss me once more, "And because I would rather live with your death than ever lose the memories of our life."_

_I knew what he meant, in that moment. If he were to die, I wouldn't be able to kill myself, if only because I was afraid I would never find him again. If only because I never wanted to forget our marital bed and the way he had so tenderly shown me love._

_I threw off the covers and stood up. I was unafraid and the farthest thing from shy you could get. The sun hit my body, and I knew that Archie was smiling and absorbing the sight from behind me._

_"I think it's time to face the day."_

_Archie rolled over lazily, "__Atlanta__?"_

_"Yes Archie?"_

_His hand reached to mine, and I lazily laced our fingers, "Thank you for making that promise to me, so long ago."_

_I knew what he had meant, it had been the first memory I had dreamed about. Apparently it was the first thing that came back to every incarnation._

_I smiled in what I hope was as loving a manner as he had just done for me._

_"We will always be together." I recited from memory, where it was burned there, "I __promise I will always love you. No matter what happens."_

_He let my hand go, and I snatched my shirt. I pulled my clothes on slowly, wistfully begging the day to go slower. Our first day of marriage._

_Our first day of the rest of our lives._

_My heart beat painfully, and I wondered if it was because I was so full of love, or if it was because I was scared that something would come to crush our tentative happiness._

_It beat again, and I raised my hand to press into my chest. Something was wrong; it wasn't supposed to do this._

_"__Atlanta__?" Archie's curious voice, the barest hint of worry in it._

_I pressed harder into my chest, begging my heart to stop pounding. It felt like thousands of knives digging into my body, liquid fire and ice both pouring into my veins._

_"Archie!" I cried out. "Something is… I hurt!."_

_He leaped over the bed, and I was in his arms. "I need to get an ambulance; I need to get you to the hospital."_

_It occurred to me then that I was having a heart attack. I hadn't thought it was possible for someone young and fit like me to have a heart attack. But it was happening. I knew it as surely as I knew my heart was trying to betray me._

_Was this the Fates getting their revenge on us? The gods? Cronus!? _

_I didn't know what I had done, or what the original __Atlanta__ had done to deserve this pain, this vengeance upon me. I didn't care by the time Archie had dashed to the phone._

_"Oh Gods, hold on __Atlanta__!" He was demanding this of me, as if his ordering me to live would make it so._

_I wanted to tell him to stop praying to the Gods, I wanted to tell him that I would love him in my next incarnation. I wanted to make love to him again, or at least tell him I loved him once more._

_But all I could do was wish that my veins weren't filled with agony, that pain wasn't becoming part of my thoughts. I wished that knives would stop battering my heart and my chest._

_I wished my heart would stop beating._

_Then it did._

_// I'll Be There When Your Heart Stops Beating. //_

Atlanta awoke with her heart pounding and mouth half open to emit a gasping scream. The panic fled when she realized it was a dream, and the heart that had been pounding so painfully in her sleep settled into a normal rhythm.

The slender hands clutching her shirt relaxed, and Atlanta finally took the time to scan the room.

Archie was standing at the end of the bed, eyes wide. When she met his gaze, the worried look gave way to fury and distaste.

"Thought you were having a heart attack. Again." Archie's voice whipped across her, desolate and bitter.

His words haunted her, just for a moment. He had known about her dream, which was disturbing in itself.

"What do you mean again?" She asked.

Archie approached her, cornering her upon the bed the way he had done before. For the first time, Atlanta wasn't the predator, she was the prey.

"I mean that you have done that to me before. I wouldn't put it past you again." He spat, "Having a heart attack before you were twenty five. The Fates really got us that time eh?"

For some reason, Atlanta wanted to cry at the words he spoke so venomously. But his face was too close to hers, and the way he was grabbing her wrist hurt too much. His cobalt eyes that she had admired before were consumed by pupils, wide and dilated.

"Are you high?" Her voice threaded into the dark room, praying that he would say no.

Archie backed off, hurt and defiance crossing his face, "Wouldn't matter to you would it? You weren't supposed to be here!"

Her heart plunged into her stomach, "What do you mean I wasn't supposed to be here?"

Archie sat down with his head in his hands, "I left the door open, left it unlocked so you could run away. So I couldn't hurt you. I considered you gone, dead, this life lost. I mourned you, and now I come back to find you aren't even gone?"

"Why would you not want to hurt me? You _kidnapped_ me!"

"You have friends to get back to, a life that I stole you from. I never have wanted to hurt you Lanta, never."

She froze, aware of the fact that he still wasn't looking at her. Aware that he had just spoke the words she had screamed at him earlier back to her. It was true; she had friends to get back to. Herry and Theresa and Odie. She had an apartment for rent, and she had recently put her resume in at three different places.

But none of these things, nothing of her _life_ was tempting her to leave. Everything about the man in front of her was tempting her to stay, even the fact that he was obviously addicted to drugs and most likely mentally unstable.

"Why have you never wanted to hurt me Archie?" She asked, calm surrounding her, "I want to know why you kidnapped me, and most of all, I want to know why I am having these weird dreams."

At that, he looked up sharply, "You're having dreams? As in more than one!? So you have dreamt about," He swallowed heavily, "about Jay's death? And the promise you made me?"

To hear him repeat her dream back at her didn't even faze her any longer, it was obvious he knew something about them. But she didn't want him to explain tonight. She wanted him lucid, and his bloodstream not corrupted with whatever he had taken.

"Maybe, but we aren't talking about it tonight. We are going to get you clean." She declared, "What have you taken?"

Archie opened his mouth to answer, but blue and red lights flooded the room. Instantly, Archie cursed and was on his unsteady feet. For some reason, Atlanta felt as much panic. She was about to be rescued! But her questions weren't answered, and Archie hadn't hurt her yet.

"Arch, lay down. Get under the covers and pretend to be asleep." Her orders weren't unheeded; trust flooded Archie's eyes and he practically leapt under the bed covers. Atlanta ripped a curtain open and joined him in the bed.

The knocking was almost immediate, firm and frightening. Atlanta got out of bed, with a whispered '_stay here'_ to Archie. She opened the door to find three fully armed officers staring at her.

"Can I help you?" She said with her voice full of fake sleep.

The largest of the men answered, "Um, yes ma'am. We are looking for a man named Archie Jeremy Killes. He has been sighted in the area, and we thought he would be here. He is easily recognizable, has purple hair and is quite thin."

Atlanta frowned, "I'm sorry, he isn't in this room. I am here with my husband. We were sleeping."

It occurred to her, quite suddenly, that the officers might recognize her. If she had been reported missing, they would know what she looked like.

"Sorry ma'am. We might have been mistaken. But he has been sighted in this area, and he is armed and dangerous. If you see him, do not confront him, immediately call the police."

Atlanta made her eyes widen, "Should my husband and I leave the hotel?"

The officer thought for a moment, "I don't think that will be necessary. He hasn't attacked any civilians; he just is mentally unstable and has been charged with many break and enters. He also assaulted a peace officer."

Atlanta gasped, briefly wondering why she had never taken drama. She seemed quite good at this acting thing, "All the same, I believe we will leave in the morning!"

The officer shrugged, "It's your choice. Sorry once more for waking you, and please, if you see this man, call us."

He handed her a poster and shuffled the team of men off her doorstep. Atlanta was sure to observe the poster as she closed the door. In truth, it was a terrible picture of Archie, with his hair long and ragged and eyes blood red. They probably wouldn't have recognized him, but the purple hair was still too conspicuous.

Archie sat up, "Why did you do that?"

"Do what?" She murmured, distracted by the photo.

"Why didn't you turn me in and save yourself?"

Atlanta returned to the bed and sighed, "It's not because I like you or anything. I just need your answers. And I'm not leaving until I get them, even if some big handsome police officer tries to make me."

Relief burned in Archie's eyes, "You thought he was handsome?"

Atlanta laughed; shocked at Archie's worry and at the way she was enjoying his company.

It was sick, and weird. But not unheard of. Stockholm syndrome, where the victim of a kidnapping falls in love or protects their kidnapper. Atlanta wondered if she had fallen victim to a syndrome, or if she was still herself.

"Cocaine." Archie mumbled.

"What?"

"Cocaine. It's the only drug that actually seems to work in my system. I'm immune to everything."

Atlanta laughed, "Really? I think that's impossible Arch."

He smirked, "Not if you're the descendant of Achilles. And don't worry, it wears off quickly. Even now, I can't feel it burning through my system."

She stared at his eyes, noticing they were back to normal. It baffled Atlanta, she could still remember the one time she had tried to smoke pot, back in high school. The high had lasted hours, and even when finally coming down, she could feel it burning through her body. She hated it, hated knowing she wasn't able to run or think or speak without this drug influence. It was the reason Atlanta didn't try anything else, and didn't drink.

"I will promise to stay with you for a week if you never take cocaine again."

Archie's eyes immediately narrowed, "How about I don't take cocaine for the rest of your life."

This stumped her, why wouldn't he promise for his life? What happened if she lived longer than him? But she could see no flaw really with this plan. Why would she care what he did when she was gone?

"Deal."

He shook Atlanta's hand briefly, but before the contact could end, he pulled her straight into his body. Atlanta collided with his body, all heat and wiry muscle surrounding her.

Her heart started to beat again, not painfully like in her dream, but loud and demanding.

Instantly Archie captured her lips and teased them mercilessly. He kissed her desperately, and softly. She was pressed into the bed and every plane of her soft body could feel his hardness upon it. It was a blindingly beautiful and terrifying experience.

"Stop!" She demanded when he left her lips for air. His body froze, and Atlanta once more appreciated the fact that Archie didn't ever hurt her.

"Sorry." He said softly, head upon her collarbone.

Atlanta could feel the way his breath blew on her shirt, above the heart that had loved him in her dream, the heart that had died on him, the heart that had feared for him and the heart that now demanded she kiss him once more.

"It's okay." She replied, letting his head rest on her, and her arms wrap around him.

Not a syndrome. Definitely all about the heart. Definitely all her.

_// All It Takes Is A Little Faith And A __Lot__ Of Heart, Sweetheart //_


	5. Knife

**Chapter 5: Knife**

A/N: Alright, sorry for the wait. It's getting harder and harder to write when I'm this busy! Now, hopefully _**Hinatasara**_ is reading this, as I wanted to reply to your PM, but you have those disabled! If anyone can get a hold of her, tell her I wanna talk to her! If not, I sure hope she reads this!

Disclaimer: I don't own the wonderful creation of CotT.

_// I Know You Don't Think That I'm Trying, But I Really Do Love You //_

This time the wonderful sensation of being woken up was different, probably because Atlanta was instantly looking for Archie. He wasn't holding her, a beautiful feeling she had gotten quite used to the night before. She scanned the room before even moving, but he wasn't hiding from her view.

He was sitting in a chair, sunlight streaming through the threadbare curtains, highlighting his purple hair like an extraordinary splash of color. He looked like a fallen angel, with cobalt eyes so lonely Atlanta felt she would die in their broken dreams.

"Archie?" She murmured. Instantly something was wrong, she knew it in the way he looked at her. Like he was dying, or drowning, or finally, truly going insane.

But he covered it well, and soon enough he was out of the chair, shadows falling onto his face. "Lanta. Hey. I'm coherent, and ready to explain some things to you. If you want that is?"

The absolute unadulterated joy and passion in his face when he looked at Atlanta hid everything that had been out in the open before, and Atlanta nodded.

"I'm ready. Tell me; what's going on Arch?"

Archie smiled, but sadly this time, "It started when Jay died. Or maybe even before that, but I think the real curse started when Jay died. It ruptured all of us."

Atlanta shook her head; she already knew this part of the story, "No. It wasn't Jay or death, or any type of curse. I remember that much at least. It was Theresa's scream. It shook the foundations of the world. I think Odie and Herry heard it; that's why they tied our life forces together."

Archie snorted, as if that was funny. His face however, was dead serious, "What a damn knot they made of us."

It was true; Atlanta could feel the way her heart was struggling to beat around this dangerous man. She loved him, it seemed obvious to her now. No wonder she had never loved any before him, Atlanta had always been waiting for Archie. But she had never been allowed to live happily ever after with him.

"I love you."

He wasn't expecting it that was for sure. Atlanta felt no fear, mainly because she knew that she was telling the truth, and the truth should not be something to fear when it was so beautiful. Atlanta also wasn't afraid because she knew he loved her too, she knew it in every bit of her.

"What?"

Atlanta laughed, reaching up to hold his cheek with her fingertips. It was roughened from stubble, and it moved when he abruptly smiled.

"I love you too." Archie whispered, happiness bleeding out of him, "And I know how to keep you this time."

The breath escaping her throat caught and held, letting the room go dead silent.

"How?"

He seemed pained, and Atlanta recognized every contour of his expression. It wasn't because of some memory, or some dream. She knew it from their time here. It was exactly how he had looked when he had untied her. Exactly how he looked when he was sitting in the chair, looking for all the world like a perfect angel.

He looked like a man ready to die. Or ready to lose everything again, for the last time. Determined, faithful, terrified and so full of righteous anger.

"Do you trust me?" The question hurt him.

Atlanta murmured, almost silent, "Of course."

Archie's eyes closed, "I have to kill you."

_// Wise Men Say Only Fools Rush In, But I Can't Help Falling In Love With You //_

It was shock that held her in place, long after Archie had left their small motel room. He had left, probably to either work up some willpower for her immediate murder –the choice he least preferred- or to give her one last chance to escape.

Atlanta was baffled that she wasn't trying to escape. He had blatantly told her he was going to kill her, because it was the only way they could be together. It didn't make sense, because she would die and they wouldn't be together.

But after Archie's explanation, Atlanta knew it made perfect sense. When Odie and Herry tied their life forces together, they had made them gateways in every world. A gateway could be a person, a place, an object, or even a feeling that was so powerful it could transport you to another place, or even another time. The universe was composed of many worlds, all of them barely a hairsbreadth from one another. They were connected by these gateways.

Out of the original seven heroes, only Odie, Herry and Jay were gateways. Neil and Archie were not because they had never truly died, and so had never come into their latent gateway power.

Essentially, Archie had to kill Atlanta so she would be reborn on the original world. Then he had to either find his way back there alone, or kill himself.

Atlanta knew the thought of dying filled Archie with horror, and not because he was afraid of it. He was terrified to lose the memories he had spent decades collecting. He remembered everything from the very first incarnations.

If he died, Neil alone would hold his past. Neil would hold everyone's past, and Archie knew that it would not be a job he relished.

Atlanta stood up from the bed, walking to the window. She pulled the blinds closed and wished Archie would hurry up and return. If she was going to be murdered, she would like to get on with it.

As if reading her mind, the door creaked open. Archie stood there, his face impassive.

"I thought you would be gone by now." He whispered.

Atlanta laughed, "It's too late for that now Arch. Come on, hope to it. I've gotta meet Hades."

Her jokes hurt him, but it was the only way Atlanta could keep calm. Archie walked towards her, and Atlanta handed him the knife she had hidden beneath her pillow.

He cocked his head, "A knife?"

"Well, I cannot kill myself, then I wouldn't reincarnate. A gun is too loud and we don't have one. You can't exactly poison me or anything else. The knife is the only way."

Archie swallowed, "I love you."

Atlanta almost replied, but the searing pain in her chest made her gasp. She glanced down to see the knife embedded in her heart. Strangely enough, it felt lighter and more healed than it ever had.

Then she couldn't feel it any more; couldn't feel anything except for the pain, and the stabs that came from every single time Archie lowered his arm.

Her body suddenly hit the floor, and it no longer hurt when the knife entered her body. Now, it only hurt because Archie's tears were hitting her skin like acid, burning. His whispered apologies were floating around her and more than anything Atlanta wished she could hold him and tell him it was okay, this was her choice.

But she lacked the willpower, lacked the strength. Blackness consumed her, even as Archie kept raising his arm and bringing it back down again.

And Again.

And Again.

_// Shouldn't Your Arrows Be Bent When They Stick In My Chest And I Can't Pull Them Out? //_


	6. Trigger : Present Time

**Chapter 6: Trigger – Present Time**

Okay, sad news all. When I am finished this story, and all my other left undone ones haha, I will probably be leaving CotT, at least for a little while. I'm finding less inspiration in it and I have lots more to do with my own work right now. As for Memoirs, I _will_ finish it, as I have never left a story unfinished. It just might take longer haha :)

Disclaimer: I do not own any Class of the Titans characters.

// _My Finger's On The Trigger, And I Can't Quite Decide //_

I thank God for that bag of chips I bought at that gas station that day. It's foolish and immature of me, I know, but without that overpriced snack, I never would have seen Archie Jeremy Killes. I never would have been kidnapped, never would have been kissed, and never would have fallen in love.

Never would have died.

So I don't regret it. I don't even believe it's possible to regret Archie, because he was my destiny. He was the only thing life would lead me to, as it had all the times before. I _belonged_ to him.

Odie and Herry tied our lives together, tied them to the worlds. I praised their creativity at the same time I cursed them. It was selfish, of course, to curse them, because when joining our life forces they had allowed everyone to live, and Jay and Theresa to love again.

But without them, I could have had my happily ever after with Archie. We had both lived through the final battle; despite the loss of our friends, we would have moved on together.

It is so easy when you are dead to feel bitter. Death truly allows that: all the cruel and hurtful things you felt in life to creep up on you again. I'm starting to believe it's because your soul has been released and so you have no moral conscience to stop you.

The re-telling of my story makes me sad. It's peculiar, how difficult emotions are now; so muted and chained. I feel as though my heart yearns to shatter, and yet, it cannot.

In life, it would have. I would be screaming and crying and striking out at the injustice of it all. But it's not really proper to act that way in death.

It's always dark here, something I have grown to love. This place, wherever it is that I am, it fills me with joy. I actually love being dead. A peculiar sentence, but one I have said before. I understand everything, I know everything, and I'm unafraid and happy.

Or… I would be. If Archie were here.

My mind is falling apart. Here I was, talking about how dark it was, and the thought of Archie distracts me. Of course it does, Archie is always on my mind, always pulling my thoughts away from where they were going.

It's as though even in death he is all of me.

Darkness. Darkness. That's what I was saying. It's dark; however, these last few days –years? Decades? Minutes? - I have been seeing a flash of gold in the distance.

I have tried to follow it, of course, but it always disappears before I reach it.

No matter, I have never cared for gold; I am waiting for the day when I see purple.

It's still annoying me to no end though, and annoyance is an emotion that is supposed to be reserved for those who are alive. So I keep following it. I don't know what I expect to find, maybe a coin, or a flower.

But the shade is very familiar, as though I have seen it many times before. I sit down and try to ponder this; did I mention that I tend to ponder things a lot now that I am dead? It's probably the reason why I know so much now; I actually stop and take the time to _think_ about it.

In life, I wasn't really a thinker; I was more of a doer. I did whatever I wanted, whatever pleased me at the time. Theresa always said I was passionate to the point of foolishness. I think Archie might have agreed with that statement.

I mean, who else calmly waits to die by the hands of the man they loved so much in life?

"Atlanta?"

The voice near shocks me out of my skin; the only other people in this realm of death are the… creatures. They aren't exactly people; I think they are just whatever they want to be in that moment. Technically, they don't even talk; I just… somehow understand them.

But this voice? This voice that startles me and makes me whirl around and drop into a defensive pose? It's beautiful, soft, clear, confident and _oh-so_ familiar.

My eyes strike ice blue, and surrounding that harsh color is the most luminescent golden hair I have seen in many lifetimes.

"Persephone?" I feel the name slip from my lips. It has been a long time since I actually spoke, I can tell by the way my mouth suddenly feels dry.

She smiles, and in that smile I can see all the lives I have ever lived flash before my eyes. I think I start to cry; it's the first time in a long time, and I desperately want Archie's arms around me.

"Don't cry Atlanta." Persephone says sweetly, and she wraps my shoulders in one arm. It isn't Archie, but I'll take what I can get at this point.

"I haven't seen you since the very beginning! I though you were dead, I though all the gods were dead!" I'm almost incoherent.

Then suddenly, Persephone was crying. It was much more dignified than my harsh sobs, but large tears still rolled down her flawless cheeks.

"They are all dead Atlanta. I am the _only_ one left."

My heart hurt, it hurt almost as much as it did when I had told my story, when I had thought about Archie. Because I knew that if all the Gods were dead, Persephone hadn't seen them in all of our lifetimes. She wouldn't risk dying when she still had us to protect.

She hadn't been with Hades in… centuries.

"Oh Persephone," I whispered, "Why do you protect us? I couldn't have done it. I would have gone to Hades already. Oh Persephone, you love him!"

Now I wanted to cocoon her in my arms, and protect her from all the world as she had done for us when we were heroes.

"I know I love him. I am going to him. But I made a promise to Theresa."

I gaped, "Theresa! You've seen Theresa?! Is she okay?"

Persephone laughed, "She's marvellous. She's with Jay, and they are finally getting their happily ever after." Persephone eyed me for a moment, "Atlanta, I was Theresa's Grandmamma."

I knew my eyes were wide, because all I had ever heard about Theresa's Grandmamma was that she was a cruel and harsh woman. Persephone was not. Clarity came to me a moment later.

"You made her hate you because if she loved you, she would have never let you go. She would have given up Jay if it meant keeping you."

Persephone nodded sadly and I felt my hand fly to my lips, "I'm so glad I'm dead." I murmured.

Persephone looked shocked for once, "Why are you glad?"

I smiled, "You think she would have left me behind if she had known I was alive?"

Persephone's blue eyes glittered smugly, "She didn't leave you behind Atlanta. She made me promise something."

I frowned, "What promise?"

Persephone handed me what looked like a small remote control. I had no idea what it was, or what it signified.

"It's a trigger. A gateway." Persephone explained, "It will take you to the Original World, where Jay and Theresa are."

"Is Archie there?" I asked immediately.

Persephone sighed, "I don't know Atlanta. He might come, he might not. You know that Archie's free will has always messed destiny up. But Atlanta, you _are_ his destiny."

"If I wait here, I will eventually see him right? Because I'm dead, and he eventually has to die?"

Persephone actually laughed, "Atlanta, you aren't dead."

I stared at her, "Yes I am. I was stabbed. By Archie. Over thirty times. I'm definitely dead."

Persephone brushed her hand in the air, as if the information she was getting was inconsequential. "Yes, you are dead. But you're not in Elysian Fields now are you?"

"I was worried about that! I should be there right?"

Persephone nodded, "It was what you were promised in saving the world. No, Atlanta, you are a lost soul. Not dead, but not alive. You would wonder their realm for all of eternity if you could not be found. And… you never would have been found if I hadn't come looking."

I gasped, "But… what are the things here? The people things?"

Persephone's eyes were infinitely wise and sad at the same time, "Other lost souls. I can't help them; by their very nature they are lost."

I shook my head fiercely, "I'm not lost, I know exactly where I belong! I belong with Archie!"

"He killed you."

"Doesn't matter, I _belong_ with him!"

Persephone smiled, "Maybe you wouldn't have been lost forever after all." She shut my fingers around the trigger and grinned.

"Take a chance Atlanta, at worst, you'll just have to die to find him, and that's about what you were already doing."

I went to reply, and she was gone. I stared down at the trigger in my hands and let a tremulous smile replace the tears I was still crying.

"I hope you get your happily ever after Persephone." I said strongly.

I squeezed the trigger.

_// I'm Coming Home //_


	7. Found : Present Time

**Chapter 7: Found - Present Time**

A/N: To be honest, I haven't touched this fic in a long, long time, and I'm so sorry to anyone who is still reading this. I was re reading some old stuff last night, and I found this story, and I was just sad I had never finished it. So here it is, the second last chapter. The last will be up right after. I miss CotT lots, it's a great fandom and I met tons of great friends here, but this is probably my last hurrah.

/ I could live with your ghost if you say that's the most that I'll get /

_It was beautiful here, so beautiful. I knew this place, I could feel it somewhere deep inside. It felt so familiar, so real and true. This had to be reality, right? I couldn't have been stabbed, couldn't be dead._

_I looked at my chest, down at the green t shirt I was wearing. Odd, I didn't own anything like this at my house. There were no holes in it. I pulled it up, exposing my flesh to the world; goosebumps puckered with the wind._

_Wind! Wind! There was no such thing as wind in death. I should know, for I was dead._

_Oh, oh. I remembered now. I remembered dying, and Archie -god, his name hurt, even to think-, I remembered the lost souls, and Persephone..._

_I dropped to my knees, searching, searching for the trigger. I remembered squeezing it, remembered thinking that I could be alive, I could be with Archie._

_But he wasn't here, and neither was the trigger._

_What in the gods' names had I done?_

_I scrambled to look around, to see where I was and what had happened. I knew I wasn't in the right place, I knew I wasn't at home with Archie or Theresa in Vancouver. I knew it like I knew the most basic and integral facts about myself: my name is Atlanta, my favourite color is red, I love Archie._

_I was somewhere different, somewhere lost. Somewhere more lost and alone and frightening than death had been._

_There was a little house, one that called to me, promising comfort and shelter and happiness. There was a pond, and lush green grass. There was a face in the window I recognized, and a part of me demanded to run to it, to sprint and scream and find her and hug her._

_"Atlanta!" Her voice was panicked, screaming, shocked. She reached me, fell to her knees beside me. Her arms pulled me into her, and I went, willingly to curl into her shoulder. I was sobbing, I realized._

_"Risa, Risa..." I cried. I wanted to tell her everything, tell her about Archie and me and my death. But I could only say her name._

_"Atlanta, how did you get here? What's wrong? Where's Archie?" Her voice was stern, the psychologist in her demanding answers. I stared at her, unsure how to answer any of her questions._

_"Risa, you were wrong, god, you were so wrong. He wasn't insane, he wasn't cruel or mean... he was mine. Oh god, he was mine."_

_Her green eyes softened, and she smiled at me, so gently. "I know, sweetheart. I know. And we're gonna find him, we're gonna bring him back to you."_

_"I love him." I told her this, hearing the sadness, the childlike wonder in my voice. I sounded pathetic, and broken, and unsure._

_The words, the promise, the first thing I always remembered, every incarnation, every single time, stung my brain; acid dripping into my body: "We will always be together. I promise I will always love you. No matter what happens."_

_Theresa nodded. "I know."_

/ Where were you, just a little late, you found me? /

_"You will never leave me Lanta. I need you. We always have to stick together, now that everyone else is falling apart. I love you."_

The words haunted him, sickened him and pained him. How dare he have the mental capacity to remember those words, let alone torture himself with them. Because they were wrong, weren't they? Atlanta had left him, they hadn't stuck together.

And it was all his fault.

Blood coated him, his hands, his face, his hair dyed as red as her's with her blood. Her body was broken and cold beneath his hands, terrible wounds ripping it apart.

He had killed her before, accidentally, and on purpose too, but never this brutally. Never with a knife. Never with her permission.

"Atlanta!" Her name came out of him a whine, a desperate plea.

Damn the gods, damn them. They took everything when they were trying to help. They took her and she was all that mattered.

That's when he realized what he wanted, what he needed.

Archie was going to get the paradise promised to him, even if it wasn't Atlanta. He would have Elysian fields, he would die, permanently. Hell, he didn't want this anymore, this constant hide and seek and pain.

Also, if he died, really died, he wouldn't lose his memories. He would go to Elysian fields and stay and be alright.

The gods though, they were gone; disappeared without a trace centuries ago. Everything was gone, he knew that much at least. But he also knew someone who could tell him where they would be, maybe. Perhaps they were in another world, another realm.

"Herry." He growled, launching himself into the bathroom Atlanta and he had shared for only a few nights. He scrubbed himself clean in the shower, her blood draining in a whirlpool at his feet.

He still felt like it coated him, like her death had sunk into his skin, and become a part of him. It almost had, really. Archie could count her deaths out loud. He had never forgotten a single one, ever. Never forgotten a single moment with her, a single reincarnation, a single word she had ever said.

_"I hate you!" She screamed, "Why would I ever love you, ever promise that! What have you done to me, you sick freak? You're a monster!"_

Sometimes remembering every word every incarnation had ever said wasn't a blessing. Sometimes Atlanta was too stubborn and independent to even think someone like Archie could be hers. Sometimes she already had people in her life; parents, best friends, once a spouse and a son.

He had loved that incarnation, as he loved all of them, but that one had been different. Sadder, lonelier, more soft and gentle than all the other ones. She had been beautiful, of course, and she could hardly resist the draw of him. None of the incarnations had ever been able to.

Even this one, dead on his floor, couldn't help but look back when she had left the gas station. Couldn't help but meet his eyes. And then the rest was history.

_"But why would you marry him? Why would you get married? You were supposed to wait, it was supposed to be me!"_

_"Archie, sometimes things don't work the way we want. But it is you, it has always been, and will always be you."_

Archie shook his head, clearing away that memory. Died, of course, as they all did. Husband killed her in a fit of jealous rage over her affair. Archie killed him for taking away Atlanta again.

Left her son orphaned. He was wealthy, and well taken care of though. Archie had seen to it. No part of Atlanta, no matter how infinitesimal, would ever be unloved.

This incarnation though? Archie sighed, because even the memory of her, only days old, was beautiful. This one would haunt him. So like the original, so brash and wild and beautiful. So independent and proud, but also so willing to love and be his.

She would haunt him, more than most of Atlanta's ever had.

_"I love you."_

Gods, how that had shocked him. She had sat there, heard his explanation and understood. And then she had said those three words, the three that he hadn't heard in so long. The last time had been the incarnation where she had her heart attack.

The most recent one she had died as a baby. Leukaemia. Damn the gods.

"I love you too." He said this aloud, pulling on a dark sweater and the hood, slipping out the window silently, leaving the brutalized body of the woman he loved.

/ next time I'll be braver, I'll be my own saviour /

_It had been weeks, and all I had done was sit on the window ledge. I was starting to look as skeletal as Theresa had before she had settled in with Jay. I barely ate, barely slept, barely spoke. I didn't want to, didn't need to._

_Theresa settled beside me. She did this every day, right around this time. I think it was guilt, that made her do it. Maybe I was wrong though, maybe she did care enough to do this. I wouldn't put it past her, this incarnation of her was more like the original than I cared to tell her. So passionate, and caring, and powerful; I knew without a doubt that she would follow Jay into death if he died again._

_We wouldn't live through another scream like hers, tearing our worlds apart._

_"Atlanta, you need to eat. I don't think he's coming." Theresa's voice was heartbroken. She had told me, only a week ago, that Persephone had been here and said this was our last incarnation. The Fates would intervene no longer, so we were safe from bizarre deaths, and we were immortal, unless of course we were murdered._

_She had also told me that all the gateways had been destroyed. Physical ones that is. Like the trigger, that brought me to Theresa._

_Why Persephone let me use it baffled me. Why would she let me go to Theresa, when Archie wasn't even here._

_This was the line of reasoning that kept me sitting on this window ledge, instead of taking a knife to my wrists as the Original Theresa had so long ago._

_They underestimated me, they thought I wouldn't follow Archie into death, but I would. I will._

_That is, if he didn't come. But I believed in Persephone. She had to have had a reason. Archie would come._

_He had to._

_"He will come Theresa. He would never leave me here. He will chase me till the end of the world, and this time, I will let him catch me."_

/ you are all I have /


	8. Magic : The End

**Chapter 8: Magic - The End.**

A/N: Alright, finally, after so long, I've finished this story! I hope it was enjoyable, and remember that Delusion is the counterpart to this, although they both stand alone. Enjoy the finale!

/ you're every line, you're every word, you're everything /

"You don't want to do that." The words, and the voice, shocked him so much he nearly dropped the knife. But Archie was better trained than that, better train to even so much as flinch when surprised. Which was lucky, because if he had flinched, he would have severed every vein in his wrist.

Although, maybe it wasn't lucky he hadn't done that.

"Herry." Archie greeted, lowering his blade and turning to the door. He was in Atlanta's house, her living room to be precise. It was lovely, and cozy, and fun. She had all sorts of random pieces, and Archie had almost smiled when he had explored it earlier. She may not have remembered him, but her subconscious had been aware.

There was one room, with a couch and computer and desk. Archie had walked into it and nearly collapsed. It was his office, the one he had in the house they had once purchased together. When they had gotten married, the one and only time. It had the exact same layout, same colors.

She had been prepared for him, even if she hadn't known it.

"Archie, please. You don't want to do that." Herry's voice was soft, pleading. "You don't want to kill yourself, not after all this time."

"I killed her, Herry." Archie murmured, "Stabbed her. Thirty eight times with a butcher knife."

Herry sighed, almost angry, more sympathetic. "Gods, Archie, why?"

Archie shrugged, "Thought we could finally be together. You know, I kill her, she gets to become a gateway. Isn't that the way it was supposed to work? She gets a new world, a new incarnation?"

"Sort of. She might be dead though. Might be in a type of purgatory, waiting to be reborn again, on one of the worlds. Might not come back on this one."

Archie waved his words away, "Doesn't matter, really, does it? I murdered her viciously this time, no way any incarnation will ever love me. How could she get over that? Hell, that is probably going to be her first memory from now on, me stabbing a knife into her repeatedly."

"So you're going to kill yourself?" Herry asked, his voice rather calm and steady. He looked happy, and Archie was almost curious as to what had caused that in him.

"Why haven't you?" Archie asked, "I mean, I'm glad, that you haven't. Not in any of your incarnations, you've never offed yourself. But why?"

"Why haven't you?" Herry retorted, turning his question back on him.

Archie smiled, "I don't want to forget. Not anything, not her, or you, or Jay, or anyone. I can't lose every piece of her. I just can't."

Herry shrugged, "I was never matched like you and Atlanta were. Like Jay and Theresa. I was never supposed to follow anyone into death. My soul was never weaved so tightly into another's that I couldn't live without them."

"I lived without her." Archie hissed.

Herry nodded. "Yes. I think that's why you're so unstable now. You've never died, never killed yourself. Probably because you just went on waiting for her to come back. But now you believe she's not coming back and you're about to kill yourself."

The knife clattered to the floor, and Archie's eyes were flooded with rage and insanity. "I am not a coward! This is not the coward's way out!"

Herry shrugged. "I think it is. So soon after her death? Think about it for a while."

Archie was glaring. "Think about it? What do you think I've been doing every second I didn't have her, Herry?"

Herry was silent, and Archie felt a burst of fondness for the huge man. He was so strong, so huge and imposing, but he had never been anything but kind. Herry deserved more, he had always deserved so much more.

"I'm a gateway, Archie. I've been looking for you and Atlanta, before you killed her. I'm sorry I was too late." Herry paused, "Persephone has destroyed all the gateways. All the physical ones. I shouldn't be here, but she requested me use my powers one last time."

"Take me to Atlanta!" Archie rushed towards him.

Herry frowned, "I can't. I was going to take you both to the Original World, but she's gone now. There is no gateway between the dead and I."

Archie's hands dropped, "Then why would I go with you?" There was no point without Atlanta, even if the call of the Original World tempted him. He hadn't been there since the beginning, travelling, through various gateways, through his friends, far away from that place. Atlanta had never reincarnated there, so he had given up on it quickly.

"To see your friends. To see your team. Jay and Theresa have found each other, you know. The Theresa you know, actually. Psychologist."

Archie laughed, a little maniacal, "I knew it would be her. So much like the Original Theresa. I knew Jay just couldn't be far behind me. Of course, she would never believe me, but she would believe Jay."

"He transported her when she used the TOUCH on him. We wonder why it didn't work like that with you, because you do have latent gateway capabilities." Herry mused.

Archie shrugged, "Never died, never came into them. I'm not a gateway, I'm still the Original Archie."

"And Original Archie would have wanted to see his friends. Would have wanted to be best man at Jay's wedding, like so many times before. Please." Herry was begging.

Archie sighed, "I will go with you, and I will see them. I miss them, I miss our team more than I can ever say. I'd love to see Jay and Theresa happy. And I need to figure out how to die, permanently. I was hoping you would know where the Gods were, so I could figure that out."

"The gods are all dead. In the Underworld, passed on. They cannot help you."

Archie cursed. "I need to talk to Neil then."

Herry nodded, "He's in the Original World too."

"So everyone, everyone except her. What have I done?"

Herry took his shoulder, squeezing gently. "I'm sorry."

Then Archie's entire world spun, blackness surrounding him and sucking him down. Herry was dragging him away, pulling him away from this world and reality.

Archie let it consume him.

/ I'm so heavy, so heavy in your arms /

"You know, Archie, sometimes things happen. Good things, and we don't expect them." Herry's voice was the first thing that brought him to consciousness.

Archie struggled to open his eyes, and when he did, he was sitting against a tree, staring at a small cottage set amongst trees and hills. Smoke was curling from the chimney, scents of baked goods and pies and home seeping into Archie's brain.

Herry is crouched before him and smiling. Happier and more carefree than Archie has ever seen him; happier than any memory he has of him with the team.

"Is this your house, Herry?" Archie asks, his brain still woozy and words a bit slurred.

Herry nodded, pride puffing his broad chest out. "And inside there is a woman, Calli. She's pregnant. And my wife."

Archie gaped, "Why didn't you tell us you got married? And a baby on the way?"

Herry shrugged. "It was unlikely. I saved her, in another world. She was already pregnant, the baby isn't mine. Biologically that is." His face went grim, "It is mine in every way that matters. I brought her here, to this cabin. I left her here, and checked in on her frequently."

"Abusing your gateway powers to have a double life." Archie laughed shakily.

Herry smiled softly, "Calli knows everything. Eventually, I just decided to stay here, with her. The rest is history."

"I'm happy for you, Herry. I am." Archie said. It wasn't a lie, and Archie thought that perhaps he was becoming more like the man and hero he had been so many centuries ago. Perhaps Original Archie was a mindset, and it was taking over again. He was proud and pleased and happy for his best friends.

His teammates. His family.

Herry looked sad. "Tell Neil. Will you? Tell him there is happiness to be found, sometimes in really unexpected places."

"I will." Archie didn't believe it, but he would tell Neil, just the same. "But Herry, you're going to outlive her. Calli. You're immortal."

Herry's eyes were shining, and he cleared his throat. "It took me a while to come to terms with that. But Archie, sometimes we aren't meant to have everything, and I think that was the problem with the gift the gods gave us. The Fates were angry. It wasn't fair."

"What they did wasn't fair either!" Archie snarled.

Herry shook his head. "No. It wasn't. But sometimes bad things happen, even to heroes, Arch."

Archie stood, watching the cabin, and a figure bustling around behind the gossamer curtains.

Herry clapped him on the back, "See that path?"

Archie nodded, seeing a small trail near Herry's cottage. "Let me guess, I follow it?"

"Yes, it goes to Jay and Theresa's house."

Archie glanced at him. "You're not coming with me?"

Herry laughed, "You've always done everything else alone, Archie, why would you want me now?"

Archie nodded once, decisively. "Thanks Herry. And if I never see you again? Well, I hope you have a wonderful life."

Herry clasped his hand, warm brown eyes meeting his. A million memories flashed through Archie's mind, a million thoughts, regrets, wishes, plans.

"You too, Archie."

Archie left him standing there, one of his best friends. He felt his eyes on his back until he passed over a hill and left him behind. Left Herry, and happiness, and baked goods, and the life Archie should have had with Atlanta, and Herry got with Calli instead. There was no bitterness though, there was no more pain.

Herry was happy, and how could Archie ever begrudge him that?

It was warm, in the Original World. It was quiet, too. The air was clean and bright, and Archie thought perhaps that they had found a type of paradise, all to themselves.

Maybe he would stay, for a little while. To clear his head, and his heart, and perhaps repent a little for the blood staining his hands. He had missed the peace and happiness that came with being with his family, his friends.

He came upon Jay quite by surprise. The Leader was sitting by the path, a sword across his knees, complete peace on his face.

"Jay?" Archie's voice was hoarse, and in that moment he realized he had missed his best friend desperately. His best friend (his teammates, every single one had been important to him, but Jay?) Jay had been his best friend. Other than Atlanta -it hurt to even think of her. Jay had been his guy friend, the one he talked about girls with, he trained with, he admired.

His brother.

"Archie?" Jay was on his feet, looking like he had seen a ghost. His sword clattered to the ground, and Archie almost smiled at the thought that Ares would have had his head for treating a weapon so disrespectfully.

Then Jay was hugging him, tight and quick and desperate. "Oh god, Archie, oh god! You're here, you're alive."

"Jay." Archie smiled, sadly. "I'm alive. I heard you found Theresa."

Jay was overwhelmed and his eyes looked sad for a second. He hugged Archie once more, and then grinned at him, "Archie, oh god. We never thought you'd-" he broke off.

"What?" Archie asked, amazed at the Leader's shock.

"We just... We didn't believe you'd come." Jay whispered.

Archie shrugged, "I may have been running and avoiding you all for a while, but you're my family. I know where my home is."

_Atlanta_. His heart thumped painfully with that thought. It was true. She was his home.

"But Archie, gods, Archie!" Jay was grinning, insanity dancing in his eyes, "Archie! She believed!"

"Theresa?" Archie scowled at Jay's odd behaviour.

Jay stared, "You don't know. You don't know?"

"What!" Archie snapped.

Jay grabbed his shoulder, the same place Herry had grabbed such a short time ago. "Atlanta's here. She's alive, and she's been waiting for you. For weeks!"

Archie stared, words replaying in his brain. Then his knife was out and at Jay's throat and he was furious and happy and unsure and scared.

"Jay, don't lie to me!" Archie hissed, "Don't you dare, don't you-" his voice cracked.

Jay didn't flinch. "She's in the house. With Terry. Just over there."

Archie dropped the knife, letting it hit the ground. The war was over, the war was over and no knives or swords or anything would ever be needed again, if Archie could just reach her.

His heart expanded with fear, and he thought of all the times he had been just too damn slow; the heart attack, the murder, the one time a semi hit her head on. He needed to get there.

He pushed Jay aside, stumbling to get started. Then he was running, running, and it was like old times with Atlanta and he had never run so fast in his life. He would beat her if he ran this fast, he knew it, he could catch her, could keep her.

The house was happy, white shutters with a wraparound porch. Two figures in the window, red hair, so much hair and Archie couldn't breathe. He just stood there, in front of the house. Paralyzed, he couldn't move, couldn't go in.

Couldn't face the woman he had loved, murdered, treasured, killed.

"Archie?" She was there, standing on the porch, whole. Alive.

He could barely meet her eyes, but just like every time, every incarnation, he couldn't stop himself. Something to do with gravity, or the gods, or fate, or even just goddamn Atlanta's beautiful hazel eyes drew him in; she was staring at him, and the instant he looked at her she broke off, launching herself off the porch.

She stumbled, righted herself and flew straight into his arms. He's hugging her, and crying, and he's pretty sure he's never going to let her go. After all, nothing can kill her while she's in his arms, right? Except for him, and a knife, but he's never going to do that again.

"I'm sorry, I'm so sorry." He's begging, explaining, pleading, "I thought it was the answer, I thought we would be okay, I thought you would finally be mine."

"Shhh, shhh," She is gentle with him (more gentle than any reincarnation of Atlanta ever was) and holds him as tightly as he is holding her, "I know, it's okay. I know."

"How can you love me, how could any incarnation love me when I killed you, so brutally?"

"You stupid, stupid man." She laughs, "You fool, I love you! I'm alive, you idiot. I love you, you dork. You dork."

_This he understands._ Dork, the word, the one word that has always been theirs. Her way of expressing everything, love. She had always loved him, he just hadn't spoken her language.

She pulls away, and kisses him. It's passionate, and primeval and beautiful and Archie can't help but think that this is it; this is the very reason he was put on this planet, more so than to defeat Cronus, or live forever, or anything: he was here to love Atlanta.

"I have a new promise for you." She's staring straight at him, her eyes soft and so loving Archie can't breathe. "Persephone has told us this is our last incarnation, and we won't die of anything bizarre. We're safe, immortal, and together. No more magic."

"Really?" Archie breathes.

Atlanta nods. "And I promise that I will stay with you, for all of our immortal lives. You are mine, and I am yours."

Archie smiles. "Really?" He repeats, just because he wants more, he wants everything.

"I never fit in before Archie, in my old life. I only had Theresa, and Odie, and as much as I loved them, I wanted more. I wanted our team, our friends. I never had our family. I never had you."

He kisses her, "I love you, I'm so sorry, I'm so sorry for everything that happened. I love you."

She smiles, and her forgiveness is the most simple, exquisite thing in the whole world. "I love you too, of course."

Then Theresa is there, Jay, Odie, Neil, and a new woman, and Archie thinks he must be dreaming, must be deluded, or perhaps even dead.

"I'm so sorry I never believed you. I did, in a way, but I never told you that." Theresa's voice comes from beside him, and Atlanta lets go of him long enough for him to hug his ex-psychologist.

"It's okay. I knew I could never be the one to convince you. It had to be Jay." Archie said softly.

Theresa laughs, "I'm so glad you found us. You found her."

Then Neil is there, and he's almost smiling, but he's also sad, and Archie can tell.

"You still have all the memories?"

Archie nods, "From the very beginning. And Neil, Herry wanted me to tell you that you can still find happiness, sometimes from the most unexpected of sources."

Neil scoffs, "Thanks for that, oh deep philosopher. I don't need anyone else though, I'm beautiful enough to keep myself happy."

Archie laughs, and Neil is grinning, and it's just like old times, except better, because Cronus is gone, and they are just normal people, finally together again.

"And maybe my friends." Neil mutters, smiling.

Odie is laughing, "This is incredible. Gods, look at us all. Magic is happening every day, even though Persephone destroyed the gateways."

Archie sobered, "So basically, magic doesn't exist anymore?"

Everyone went quiet. They were happy, but they were also shocked. Magic had been apart of their lives since the moment the Greek Gods had taken them to New Olympia.

Atlanta couldn't believe it. Could the time of magic really be over; with only science, technology and death left to live for? She wished magic was still in all the worlds, hidden away in lovers' smiles and baby's laughter and fresh blooms in spring. Perhaps the magic had never left, only grown harder to spot.

But perhaps not. It wasn't preposterous that magic was extinct, and all the gateways had been broken and every world had collided and drifted away. But she thought the twinkle of the stars and the mysteries of hearts proved the theory wrong. Magic existed. It had to.

Although that could just be the desperation for a better world echoing through her brain and heart, denying this time of death and pain and delusion. After all, Atlanta had always thought that what is truly real depended on what you believed it to be.

"No, it has to still be here." Atlanta muttered, gaining the attention of her friends, and the one man who had spent his life waiting for her. She took Archie's hand. "We're together aren't we?"

"Always." He promised, eyes soft and full of their future together.

How could she not look at him, and deny the existence of magic? Atlanta believed, she had to. She had no choice.

She believed in the morning sunrise, and the moonlit sky. She believed in the smile that Theresa was showering on her, even though every glowing particle of happiness that emanated from her was for Jay. Atlanta believed in the sadness that was lodged in her heart, and the joy that sprang to life when she glanced at Archie.

Atlanta believed many things existed, and magic was hardly the most preposterous of them all. She believed that she had been dead, many, many times. She believed Archie loved her. She believed she would spend the rest of her life with her soulmate, and her murderer.

More than anything, Atlanta believed in love. She cringed at the horrifically tender and uncharacteristic thought. How cliché. But it was true.

Archie lifted her hand, kissing her knuckles, promises upon promises coming to the forefront.

She believed in her own heart.

/ and I think that the point was that I'm yours, after all this time, forever. /


End file.
